Self Employed Commercial Car Insurance

Self employed commercial car insurance is an important commodity for those who own their own small business. For entrepreneurs like that, vehicles are often mobile offices, taking them from job to job or appointment to appointment. In many cases auto owners do not even realize their need for commercial car insurance. Small business owners who work for themselves quite often just work under a DBA and do not have any articles of incorporation to speak of. For many of these folks, their cars are titled in their name and are their personal as well as their work vehicles. This is a shady area that can get us in some trouble as drivers come tax time when it comes to the things we claim on our cars and trucks. And in a similar way, having only a personal auto insurance policy can also get us in trouble in the event of an accident or other car insurance claim.

Personal Auto Insurance is Insufficient

For anyone who works out of their car, personal car insurance coverage is not sufficient to protect them in case they need to make a claim. If you use your car, truck, or SUV for work purposes, you need to be protected with commercial auto insurance, such as specialized insurance for safer cars. There is no debating this fact. For many people, the need for small business insurance is unclear because most of these entrepreneurs own their cars and do not have them in the business name. It is somewhat logical to follow the train of thought that says since you own it personally and use it for your personal use outside of work, that you can simply carry personal auto insurance on it and call it good. But that is not the way it works.

Let's use the example of a traveling salesman. He might not think his sedan needs to be insured with a commercial policy because of its small size, and because of the fact that he travels alone when he visits his accounts every week. But this has little to do with anything. It is true that using a car to carry co workers constitutes work use, but driving alone doesn't necessarily constitute the opposite.

If you travel to your accounts and bring the materials with you that you sell to them, that is work use. If you just transport yourself and the purpose of all of your travels is to do business, you are using your car for work. Again, commercial car insurance is needed here. If you get into an accident and the insurance adjuster asks you what you were doing an hour from home in the middle of the work day and you tell them you were on a sales route for your company, immediately the nature of your insurance policy gets called into question. Don't let that happen. Do things the right way and get commercial car insurance.

Save on Commercial Auto Coverage

Smart business people don't try to cut corners to save a few dollars in the short term. What that does is expose you to unnecessary risk over the long run. And the whole point of instant auto insurance is to insulate you from that very same risk. Get a policy that will protect you, one with generous liability limits and that will not call into question your use of the vehicle if anything should happen to you while you are driving it.

Get a good deal on a commercial policy by getting quotes from local providers and finding the best prices. Use the form at the top of this page to get started. Finding ways to save on commercial car insurance is the smart way to trim costs. Trying to do things haphazardly and sneaking around in a half legal fashion is not the way to do business.

Talk to your tax advisor about the possibility of writing off your insurance expenses. It is quite possible that once you convert to a commercial policy you will be able to figure it into your taxes, an advantage that may do more than just offset the possible cost difference in upgrading to commercial coverage.

Self employed individuals running small businesses with no employees often believe that they do not have to have commercial coverage because of the types of cars they drive or because of the industries they are in. The truth is that the law can be rather murky when it comes to what is required for some professionals. But if you are a company owner or independent contractor working for another company, it is quite likely that the law in your state will dictate commercial coverage on your work vehicle, even if it is also your personal vehicle. Be safe and get self employed commercial car insurance for your car.